28-year-old faces 14-year sentence after being convicted of sexually assaulting teen

A 28-year-old man convicted this month of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl in 2019 could face up to 14 years in prison when he is sentenced.

Royce Robert Deputee was convicted by a jury June 13 of four counts of lewd acts on a child under the age of 14, according to the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office. He had pleaded not guilty to the charges in September of 2021.

The victim, who knew Deputee before the incident, was sexually assaulted by the defendant in January 2019 while she was asleep, according to prosecutors, but was able to escape. Her family alerted the police the following day, the D.A.’s Office said.

Deputee was booked into Sacramento County Main Jail on Oct. 27, 2020, and a DNA test of the man corroborated the victim’s allegations.

Deputee will be sentenced July 21 in Sacramento Superior Court.